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Hamilton county judge wayne sturtevant letter

1.
WAYNE A. STURTEVANT
Judge, Hamilton Superior Court 5
One Hamilton. County Square, Ste. 297
E-mail: wayne.sturievant*hamiltancounty.imgov
Noblesville, Indiana 46060
(317) 776-8260
March 28. 2014
This is my 17th "state of the court" report and this year it is sent with a dual purpose. First, I
want to provide some information about how Superior Court 5 has performed. Secondly, since I
am running for re-election to continue to preside over that court, this is a good opportunity to ask
for your continuing support. I have no opponent in the May primary, so I'm hopeful that this
will be the only -campaign literature" I need to send you in 2014, but no candidate can ever
know what November might bring.
Let me start with a look hack at the last 5 years of this six year term. When I looked at the
numbers for those years I was amazed to find that there have been over 42,000 cases filed in this
court. These numbers reflect that we have operated with an average caseload that is 50% higher
than what the Indiana Supreme Court expects of a trial court. Perhaps that makes it even more
amazing that the court has also resolved over 42,000 cases in that time. Our ability to keep up
year in and year out is a testament to the hard work and efficiency of my staff and many others in
the courthouse who make the system work. We also had similar results in 2013. We resolved
over 91% of the felonies filed, 97% of the misdemeanors, 107% of the traffic tickets and over
105% of the small claims
It is important for judges to treat the people who come before them with courtesy and respect and
also to put the time and effort into making the best decision possible. While criminal cases in
Hamilton Co. are randomly assigned within certain case types, where a civil case gets filed is the
tiler's choice. It is a good sign then that the numbers reflect a very steady small claims caseload
and an increase in most other civil case filings over the past five years. It is also encouraging
that since 2008, there have only been 29 appeals taken to the Indiana Court of Appeals from my
rulings and in 25 of those cases my original ruling still stood afterwards..
The past five years also saw the big economic downturn which Hamilton County survived thanks
to sound financial leadership. All parts of county government, including the courts tightened
their belts and became more efficient during that time. While courts are not about generating
income, it is noteworthy that in addition to cutting expenses Superior 5 did generate total revenue
of over $2.7 million, that came back to county and local government during those years.
Thank you for your past support I hope for your continued support in the future. If you have any
questions or comments, my telephone number and my e-mail address are above.
Yours truly,
Wayne A. Sturtevant
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Paid or and authorized by the Committee to Re-Elect Judge
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